US soldier pleads guilty in rape, murder of Iraqi girl

February 20, 2007
US soldier pleads guilty in rape, murder of Iraqi girl

FORT CAMPBELL, United States (AFP) - A US soldier pleaded guilty to the rape and murder of a 14-year-old Iraqi girl and the killing of her family.

Sergeant Paul Cortez, 24, was the second soldier to plead guilty in a deal that is expected to allow him to avoid the death penalty. He was expected to be sentenced late Tuesday or Wednesday.

Cortez was among five soldiers accused of plotting the March 2006 rape and murder of Abeer Kassem Hamza al-Janabi, as well as the murder of her parents and younger sister.